2000
#8,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,560
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.32
Rare Last name
Cottrill
Derived from a place name meaning "cottage on a hill" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,004 Americans carry the last name Cottrill. That puts it at #8,990 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,603 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cottrill surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Cottrill with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 85,603
Census rank
#8,990
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,492 bearers of the surname Cottrill in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8990th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cottrill, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cottrill
The surname Cottrill is believed to have originated in England, with its roots dating back to the 12th century. It is thought to be a locational name, derived from a place name such as Cotterhill or Cotterill, which may have referred to a cottage on a hill or a cottage by a hill.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire in 1327, where a Robert de Cotterell is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use in the Midlands region of England during the 14th century.
In the late 16th century, the surname appears in various parish records across England, including in Oxfordshire, where a Thomas Cottrell was mentioned in the records of Watlington in 1591. Other early spellings of the name include Cotterell, Cotterill, and Cotrill.
The Cottrill surname is also associated with several notable historical figures. One such figure is Sir Charles Cottrell (1615-1701), an English politician and courtier who served as Master of the Ceremonies to King Charles II. Another prominent individual was Thomas Cottrell (1698-1764), an English merchant and Member of Parliament for Bletchingley.
In the 18th century, the Cottrill surname gained further prominence with the birth of Samuel Cottrill (1755-1832), an English clergyman and author who served as the vicar of Ormskirk in Lancashire. His son, Charles John Cottrill (1798-1871), followed in his footsteps and became a renowned Anglican clergyman and author.
Additionally, the Cottrill name has been linked to several place names in England, such as Cotterill Farm in Derbyshire and Cotterill Hall in Staffordshire, which may have served as the original locations from which the surname derived.
While the Cottrill surname is most prevalent in England, it has also been recorded in various other parts of the world, likely due to migration and immigration patterns over the centuries. However, its origins can be firmly traced back to the English counties of Staffordshire, Oxfordshire, and Derbyshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cottrill
Among Census respondents with the surname Cottrill, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Cottrill bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Cottrill surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 3,230
- Two or more races3.7% · 130
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 80
- Black or African American0.8% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cottrill
Cottrill appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#8,834
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,709
+149 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Down 310 places
2020
#8,990
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,492
-217 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Down 156 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,524 | 3,560 | 1.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,834 | 3,709 | 1.26 | +149 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 310 places |
| 2020 | #8,990 | 3,492 | 1.17 | -217 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 156 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Cottrill surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #8,834 | #8,990 | -1.8% |
| Count | 3,709 | 3,492 | -5.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.26 | 1.17 | -7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cottrill bearers went from 3,709 to 3,492 (-5.9% change). The surname moved down 156 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,834 to #8,990.
FAQ
Cottrill surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cottrill?
Name Census estimates that about 4,004 living Americans carry the surname Cottrill. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,603 residents.
How common is Cottrill?
Cottrill ranks #8,990 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.17 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,492 people with the surname Cottrill. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,004), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.17 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Cottrill.
Has Cottrill become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cottrill went from 3,709 recorded bearers to 3,492. That is a decrease of 217 (-5.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,834 to #8,990.
What does the Census say about the background of Cottrill?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cottrill, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Cottrill in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (3,230 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cottrill appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (2.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Cottrill (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Cottrill mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "cottage on a hill" in Old English. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Cottrill (1.17 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Cottrill?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Cottrill, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.